"Wherefore," he said, "it necessarily follows from all this, that some
such opinion as this should be entertained by genuine philosophers, so
that they should speak among themselves as follows: 'A by-path, as it
were, seems to lead us on in our researches undertaken by reason,'
because as long as we are encumbered with the body, and our soul is
contaminated with such an evil, we can never fully attain to what we
desire; and this, we say, is truth. For the body subjects us to
innumerable hinderances on account of its necessary support, and
moreover if any diseases befall us, they impede us in our search after
that which is; and it fills us with longings, desires, fears, all kinds
of fancies, and a multitude of absurdities, so that, as it is said in
real truth, by reason of the body it is never possible for us to make
any advances in wisdom.
"For nothing else but the body and its desires occasions wars,
seditions, and contests; for all wars among us arise on account of our
desire to acquire wealth; and we are compelled to acquire wealth on
account of the body, being enslaved to its service; and consequently on
all these accounts we are hindered in the pursuit of philosophy.
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